Xiao Yiran gradually figured out what happened from the narration of his mother Sun and Wang's mother. His father, Xiao Guoliang, was an orphan who was taken in by his grandfather to be a little Si for his uncle and a companion. Later, my grandfather took a fancy to his father Xiao Guoliang's talent and character, and first wanted to marry his aunt to his father, but unfortunately my aunt and grandmother died of the epidemic one after another. After his mother Sun became an adult, his grandfather planned to marry his mother Sun to his father Xiao Guoliang, but he was stopped by his follow-up grandmother, until his parents ran away from home angrily after his grandfather's death.

Now, the two half-uncles of the same year as their mother Sun, idle and not doing their jobs, seeing the fall of Sun's mansion, just heard that his father Xiao Guoliang was admitted to the Jinshi and sent to Taicang County to be an official, so he sent Wang Ma to come around, hoping to get his father Xiao Guoliang's care.

After Xiao Yiran figured it out, although he was very dissatisfied with his mother Sun's stepmother, he didn't say anything.

"Mother Wang, I'm tired from running around all morning, so let's go down and rest, and discuss it again when my husband comes back."

There are not many houses in the Xiao family, and there are few guests, because Wang's mother is a female guest, so she will be arranged to go to the backyard for the time being, and she will be squeezed with Xiaoxi temporarily.

"Mother, will Daddy agree?"

"It should be, because there has been no contact before, so your father didn't take the initiative to go back. Now that grandma has sent Wang Ma here, it is estimated that your father will still agree to go back and have a look. ”

"Oh."

Xiao Yiran also knows the personality of his parents, and it is estimated that his mother Sun's guess should be correct.

Just when the mother and daughter were talking, something unexpected happened in the county government that Xiao Guoliang didn't expect.

Originally, Xiao Guoliang's general judgment generally did not participate in the trial of the county government, unless there was a call from the magistrate, or the magistrate had other things temporarily, the general verdict would be interrogated. After lunch today, Xiao Guoliang was busy with his own affairs, but was shouted by Wang Zhixian in the lobby.

"Lord Xiao, there was a lawsuit over a business dispute just now. The defendant is from Jiangning Mansion, and his words seem to have something to do with Lord Xiao. ”

"Jiangning Mansion? Lord Zhixian, what is this person's name? ”

"Sun Jidong, can Lord Xiao know this person?"

"I am dissatisfied with the county magistrate, and the uncle of the lower official's wife is also called Sun Jidong, but I don't know if it is a person with the same name?"

"Whether it's Lord Xiao's wife-in-law or uncle, you'll know when you call it."

Wang Zhixian turned back and shouted to the officials:

"Lead the plaintiff Sun Jidong to the back office to meet him."

The official turned around and went out, and Wang Zhixian also led Xiao Guoliang to a room behind the lobby. After a while, he heard footsteps outside, Xiao Guoliang hurriedly came to the door, and saw that the official just now was followed by a man in his forties, although it had been more than ten or twenty years, Xiao Guoliang still recognized the person at a glance, it was his wife's uncle Sun Jidong.

After taking a few steps, he stepped forward and grabbed Sun Jidong's hand, and said with a little excitement:

"Big brother, it's really you."

"Guoliang, I haven't seen you for many years, how is my sister?"

It turned out that when they were in Sun's Mansion, the two had been calling each other like this, and they hadn't seen each other for many years, and they still followed the habits of the year.

"Big brother, please go to the house to talk, Wang Zhixian is also there."

Sun Jidong was held by Xiao Guoliang's hand, and came to the house all the time, and when he saw Wang Zhixian sitting there, Sun Jidong broke free from Xiao Guoliang's hand and was about to kneel.

"With Lord Xiao here, Shopkeeper Sun should not make this big gift."

Wang Zhixian said, stood up, and stretched out his hand to grab Sun Jidong, who was about to kneel.

"Shopkeeper Sun, please sit down and speak."

When Sun Jidong sat down with Xiao Guoliang a little restrained, Wang Zhixian said to Xiao Guoliang:

"Let's ask Shopkeeper Sun to tell Master Xiao what happened."

"Guoliang, here's the thing. You know that I have been running a grocery store, and this time I came to Taicang to buy a batch of pastries, brown sugar and other living things. I don't want to, after coming to Taicang, the 'Cai Kee' shop, which has been doing my business, was temporarily out of stock due to a happy event at home, so I went to a neighboring 'Cui Kee' shop to buy goods. Yesterday afternoon, the goods were inspected, the silver money was counted, and it was said that the goods would be loaded early this morning. I didn't think about it, when I went in the morning, the shopkeeper Cui insisted that I didn't pay the money. ”

The more Sun Jidong spoke, the more excited he became, and his voice gradually became louder. Wang Zhixian interjected at this time:

"Lord Xiao, the key is that the two families have their own opinions, and there are no witnesses or written evidence. Seeing that the shopkeeper Sun didn't look like a cheating person, and said that he knew Lord Xiao, I temporarily detained the two of them, and asked Lord Xiao to come over to discuss. ”

"Thank you, Lord Zhixian, for seeing my brother-in-law."

"Lord Xiao is polite, after all, he is a colleague. It's just that if there is no evidence, this case is really difficult to try. ”

Xiao Guoliang also felt a little tricky, lowered his head and thought about it, and said to Wang Zhixian:

"Lord Zhixian, can you be accommodating and try this case again tomorrow? I'll take my brother-in-law home tonight, we haven't seen each other in almost fifteen years. ”

"Why not? Master Xiao just took the shopkeeper Sun home, and Cui Ji's shopkeeper was detained overnight. ”

After Xiao Guoliang and Sun Jidong thanked Wang Zhixian, they rushed home directly.

"Madam, the master is back."

The mother and daughter, who were talking in the hall, heard Xiao Qing's words in the courtyard, stood up together and should go to the door of the hall. Xiao Yiran saw that his father Xiao Guoliang was followed by a relatively wealthy man of the same age as Xiao Guoliang, and was about to ask his mother Sun. I saw Sun, who took two steps quickly, stepped out of the door, greeted the comer, and shouted with a crying voice:

"Big brother, how can the eldest brother be with her husband?"

The "big brother" in front is called Sun Jidong, but the next sentence is asking Xiao Guoliang. He turned his head to Xiao Yiran behind him and said:

"Ran'er, come and see your uncle."

Xiao Yiran turned out from behind his mother Sun, gave a salute to Sun Jidong, and screamed crisply:

"Uncle."

Sun Jidong hurriedly stretched out his hand to help Xiao Yiran up, pulled him down, looked at it carefully for a while, and said to Sun:

"This niece and sister looked like this when they were young."

One sentence aroused Sun's heart, and tears couldn't help but flow down.

"Big brother, please come to the house and talk. A good wife, I haven't seen my eldest brother for many years, so I should be happy. ”

A family of three hugged Sun Jidong to the hall and invited Sun Jidong to sit in the first place. Sun Jidong may have felt that Xiao Guoliang was now an official, so he sat down after being polite. Immediately, Xiaoxi was busy serving tea to a few people. Sun also instructed Xiaoxi:

"Sue sù embroidery girl, prepare dinner. In addition, go and see if Wang Ma is awake, please come over too. ”

"Sister, which Wang mother?"

"Big brother, it's the princess in the house, and she only arrived after lunch."

"What a coincidence. What is the reason why Wang Ma is here? ”

Sun immediately told Xiao Guoliang and Sun Jidong about Wang's mother's intentions, and after listening, Xiao Guoliang didn't say anything, but Sun Jidong snorted heavily in his nose.

"She's embarrassed to let Mama Wang come to you, so she doesn't want to think about what she did back then."

"It's been so many years since what happened back then, so we won't talk about it today. Big brother, we haven't seen each other in almost fifteen years, so have a good drink tonight. ”

Xiao Guoliang diverted the topic.

"Big brother, you came to Taicang, why didn't you come home directly, how did you meet Ran'er's father?"

"Sister, it's a long story. Big brother, I have heard that you have moved to Taicang, but I have never had the face to see you. This time I came to Taicang to buy goods, but I was cheated, and the lawsuit went to the county government, so I had to tell the truth to the county magistrate. ”

Xiao Guoliang took over the topic and told the mother and daughter about the acquaintance of their uncle and son-in-law in the county government today.

"How can there be such a black-hearted merchant?"

Sun said angrily.

"Big brother, how many silver taels are there? If there are no witnesses and no evidence, it is really difficult to get this silver back. ”

"Alas, I used to do business with Cai Kee, and it has always been like this, ordering the goods in the afternoon, paying the money, and picking up the goods early the next morning. It was also my carelessness for a while, but there were not many silver taels, only sixty-seven taels of silver. I just can't swallow this breath. ”

Just said this, Wang's mother, who was resting in the backyard, was led over by Xiaoxi.

"The slave has seen the eldest prince."

"Mother Wang, this is at my sister-in-law's house, so we won't talk about those rules. Wang Ma is also an old man in the house, come and sit down. ”

Under the persuasion of Xiao Guoliang, Sun, and Sun Jidong, Wang Ma was reluctant to sit down next to Xiao Yiran in the first place.

The family did not continue to talk about the silver being pitted, but talked about Sun Fushang, Sun Jidong's two half-brothers.

"The eldest prince separated from each other, and I don't know very well what the two younger sons did. Since the death of the master, the lady has become more and more pampered with the two sons. I barely read the book for a few days, and I spent all day wandering, walking through the streets and alleys, and turning to those places of fireworks, and the silver was spent like flowing water. Today's Sun Mansion has almost been hollowed out by the two sons. Only the house and the land have not been moved, but if the two young sons continue to do this, I am afraid that it will not take a year or two to sell the house and land. ”

"Madame, doesn't she care?"

Xiao Guoliang asked.

"I didn't care about it at first, but now I want to take care of it, it's too late."

"Didn't the eldest brother ask about this?"

"Alas, Guoliang doesn't know, those two younger brothers, no one listens to anyone. Just listen to the ruffians on the streets. Although I am the eldest brother, I will not talk about the separation for many years, and at the beginning, I couldn't stand it and went to find my wife. You don't know, Madame said that I was nosy, and that since I had separated from the family, I didn't need to worry about the affairs of the family. Since then, I have never been to the house again. ”

"Big brother, after all, it's the family property left by my father, so I can't watch it lose by my two younger brothers, right?"

Sun's eyes turned red again.

"Sister, I can't bear it, but I really can't take care of it."

Sun Jidong said and looked at Wang's mother.

"I don't know if Wang Ma has heard of it? The two younger brothers were invited to my house once, and the original intention was that the brothers would sit together and persuade them while they were drinking. Halfway through the banquet, my words began, and the two younger brothers brushed their sleeves away. ”

Because he was worried about the lawsuit the next day, he was blocked by the actions of the two half-brothers in the family, which made the atmosphere in the room dull for a while.